This short film has a great relevance to music and learning music, worth watching.
Blog
Fascinating
Get Playing!
The BBC and James Rhodes, what you can do with 20 minutes a day!
A performance to inspire you
Adults Piano Social Concert 2015
Many thanks to Eve, Julia, Victoria, Trevor, Wayne and visitors Carole and Beverly who attended the concert on 6th December.
It’s difficult practicing 2 pieces and trying to perfect them, then playing them in front of other students. However the performances were excellent, well done to all!
How playing a musical instrument benefits your brain
Great video here, showing the effect of playing a musical intrument on the brain.
The perfect description of what playing an instrument is like (on a really good day)
Vladimir Horowitz
My all time hero. Horowitz was the consummate virtuoso. He was a throwback to the towering giants of the late Romantic era. He took piano technique to a new level in the 20th century. Audiences would be packed with pianists trying to work out how he could accomplish such feats.
He recorded prodigiously and his musical intelligence and sensitivity was beyond peer. His encores were a thing to be treasured. Here is perhaps his most famous, just over 3 minutes of barnstorming technical effortlessness, not a movement on his face, just concentration and all that keyboard power in authoritative control.
James Rhodes is coming to the Bromsgrove Artrix
If you haven’t seen him, James Rhodes is a top class concert pianist. He’s performing a musical evening of Chopin in the intimate Bromsgrove Artrix on Friday 20th February 2015 at 7:30 pm.
This is a real treat! James not only performs at the highest standard, he engages with the audience, often giving anecdotes about composers’ lives. This is a must see!
http://www.artrix.co.uk/Music/James-Rhodes/2538
The 2015 Challenge
I came across these articles 40 Piece Challenge and the Go Play Project.
The ‘2015 Challenge’ is to set a target to learn or re-learn a large number of piano pieces in a year. You set weekly, fortnightly or monthly deadlines. You practice the piece and then either perform it to a friend or teacher, or record it.
The result may not be perfect but taking part can help to overcome the tendency towards procrastination and perfectionism. The concept is inspirational and builds ability while learning new pieces and having fun along the way.
It’s a great idea on two counts:
As a pupil it helps you focus and practice, and the performance at the end will go some way to overcome anxiety about playing in front of someone.
As a teacher it encourages me to learn new pieces, and removes the excuse that I’m too busy teaching. Hopefully it builds a platform of increased ability to learn more complex pieces in the future.